Microsoft Office for iPad: CEO May Unveil Next Week

Microsoft will reportedly introduce Office for iPad at an event in San Francisco on March 27.

Satya Nadella will host his first event next week as CEO of Microsoft and invitations to the event have been making the rounds. Nadella is expected to discuss Microsoft’s mobile and cloud strategies, and sources indicate the company will be revealing an app for the tablet similar to Office for iPhone at the affair.

The company’s Build developer conference begins April 2. There is speculation Microsoft will drop news of Office for iPad next week to draw attention and set the stage for the upcoming conference.

Microsoft has been reportedly working on the product for months now, and first introduced an iOS version of Office for iPhone last June.

The iPad will apparently be similar to the iPhone version, and will require an Office 365 subscription for editing. Editing will be fully supported for Office, Excel, and Powerpoint apps.

The unveiling is in line with what Nadella announced to be his “cloud first, mobile first” strategy for the company when he was named as the replacement for CEO Steve Ballmer in February.

“I would say the first thing I want to do and focus on is ruthlessly remove any obstacles that allow us to innovate,” says Nadella in his interview video and first memo to Microsoft employees.

“And then focus all that innovation on things that Microsoft can uniquely do,” said Nadella.

Microsoft launched a Mac version of its One Note Office app Monday, as well as Office Online last month, the company’s version of Google Drive.

The March 27 event will set the stage for future announcements from the company. It is expected Microsoft will also unveil Windows Phone 8.1 at Build, as well as details about its Windows 8.1 Update and information about Windows 9.